


Dandelion

by Kaerith



Series: Witcher Prompt One-Shots [1]
Category: Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Happy Ending, Lambert Lambert What A Prick, M/M, Renaissance Faires, Romance, the one that got away
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-19
Updated: 2020-04-19
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:27:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23743021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaerith/pseuds/Kaerith
Summary: Geralt is a secret fan of singer/songwriter Jake Lytten. When he sees the musician is performing at a renaissance faire as the bard Jaskier, he decides it's time to take his young daughter Ciri to go meet Lambert and his new boyfriend Aiden- who is a knight also working at the same faire.
Relationships: Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion
Series: Witcher Prompt One-Shots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1791685
Comments: 18
Kudos: 220
Collections: Interesting Character and/or Interesting Relationship Development, Witcher Kink Meme (Dreamwidth)





	Dandelion

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired from a kink meme prompt: "Geralt is a fan of Jaskier the famous bard." Link: https://witcherkinkmeme.dreamwidth.org/429.html?thread=208045

Geralt knows he looks out of place here. He sticks out like... well, a badly dressed time traveller. 

He can't believe Lambert is into this. It seems so... whimsical and Lambert has always mocked whimsy. 

But there's Lambert waving and actually looking really good in some laced-up leather vest thing. 

"Geralt, this is Aiden. Aiden, this is Geralt and Ciri," his old friend says. 

Geralt shakes the hand of Lambert's boyfriend. He's blond and stockier than Lambert, well-muscled, and is dressed in tight-fitting sports wear. "Good morrow, sir," Aiden says, and Geralt only stifles an eye roll and snort out of politeness. Aiden's grin is wide and genuine, though, and he kneels down and takes Ciri's hand. "Your Highness," he adds, bowing his head as she giggles. 

Ciri, being nine and currently in love with horses and princesses, had been excited to learn that renaissance faires existed and that they were going to visit Uncle Lambert and go to one. She was dressed up, of course, like a princess. 

"I am Cirilla, princess of Cintra Street." She is trying to act haughty and speak in some sort of old-timey accent. She has none of her usual hesitancy for strangers and Geralt feels like the trip has been worth it already. 

"I'm a vampire!" Lambert attacks the princess with an aerial attack, picks her up, and pretends to eat her neck while she shrieks with laughter. Geralt gives Aiden a hand up. 

"I figured you would be in costume, not Lambert." 

The man grins. "I'm a professional knight. I mostly wear armor, and that stuff is heavy and hot." They see Lambert and Ciri abruptly run off. 

"He's probably taking her to see the horses. Don't worry, I made sure that he knows which ones are safe for Ciri to pet." 

They follow, walking through the dusty lot filled with RVs and tents. Geralt asks Aiden about his unusal job and his nomadic life. Sounds like Lambert is really getting into this. "He's trying to perfect an English accent," Aiden says, his eyes shining with mirth. "It's horrible! But he's really wanting to fit in with the rest of us weirdo ren geeks." 

Geralt could actually understand Lambert's perspective. "His childhood wasn't great. I remember how he talked about wanting to run away to join a circus." 

"Me too," Aiden said. "I was lucky I found this community when I was young and had the talent to be a knight. Of course," he says with a self-deprecating smile and shrug, "It's more acting than real fighting, but I really love it." 

Ciri has found the horse paddocks. The animals are in temporary pens with hand-painted wooden signs with their names and warnings for the biters. She is petting the nose of a gray horse through the bars and looks awestruck. 

"Oh, shit. She's going to up her begging game now that she has actually touched a horse." 

Aiden laughs at Geralt's groan. 

"She is called Pegasus!" Ciri says with hushed reverence. "Dad, feel her nose!" 

"Looks like Pegasus is a boy," Geralt says, but he touches the horse's nose and it feels nothing like he would have imagined. 

A man bursts out of the trailer next to the pen, beaming and holding an armfull of... stuff. "I didn't know a princess was stopping by!" He winks cheerfully at Aiden. "Would Her Highness help me get Pegasus in his costume?" 

Ciri turns to Geralt with pleading eyes. "Can I, Daddy?" 

Geralt can't say no to the eyes or the nickname. "Only if it's safe." 

"Pegasus is the best horse with kids," Lambert says. "She'll be fine." 

Geralt leans on the fence next to his friend to watch Ciri learn how to brush Pegasus. "Who's that? Another knight?" 

Lambert and Aiden laugh. "God, no. You don't actually want to see him try to ride a horse! That's Jaskier. He's a-" 

Geralt doesn't need Aiden's explanation. He knows who Jaskier is. Jaskier is why he finally stopped resisting visiting Lambert in his weird new living situation. There had been faires closer to where he and Ciri lived twice in the last several months, but seeing that Jaskier was performing at this one made it worth driving out of state. 

Geralt hadn't even recognized the musician at first, but now that he looked past the bed hair and raggedy sweatshirt and joggers, he could see those bright blue eyes and the lips that had made him more than just someone whose songs he liked. 

Lambert was laughing, and Geralt was pretty sure his friend was laughing at him. "What?" Aiden asked. 

Lambert whispered to his boyfriend, not all that quietly, "Geralt has a crush!" 

"Shut up." 

Ciri stops brushing the horse and gives him a look. "Dad, you told me that's a rude thing to say!" 

Geralt grunts. "We can be rude to Uncle Lambert. He is a mean man." 

Ciri tries to defend Lambert, but all the adults are laughing. Except Geralt, because he is watching Jaskier laugh. 

Geralt pretends to ignore all of Lambert and Aiden's teasing and watches as Jaskier pulls a box into the pen so Ciri can stand on it and reach Pegasus' mane to help Jaskier braid ribbons and fake flowers into it. The final step is strapping on a set of fake folded wings onto the patient horse. Even Geralt must admit that the animal looks magical, and Ciri almost hyperventilates with excitement that she had been able to help. 

Jaskier puts the supplies away and manages to pull Ciri away from Pegasus and back to the other side of the fence. "Are you sure you want to be a princess and not a stablehand?" He asks Ciri. "Your beautiful dress is dusty and it looks like it will be really hot this afternoon." 

Geralt had been unable to talk Ciri out of wearing the horrible thick polyester costume. He had put regular clothes in his backpack but had expected her to be too stubborn to change and avoid heat stroke later on. But when Jaskier mentioned it she looked down and admitted, "Yeah, but I want to dress up like Uncle Lambert!" 

Jaskier nodded. "That's perfectly fine. In fact, I have a friend who can lend you and your dad some nice garb so you both can fit in." 

Ciri squeals and jumps and grabs Geralt's hand. "Please, Daddy?" 

Geralt knows the costume rental will be expensive, but he says, "We can get you something else to wear. I'm fine." 

Jaskier, however, looks him up and down and licks his lips and Geralt's brain just stops. "C'mon Daddy," he says, his voice low and slow and giving Geralt heart palpitations. "I bet you would look dashing in some armor." 

Geralt gulps and nods helplessly, his hearing going fuzzy enough to easily ignore Lambert's snickers. 

Jaskier leads them from the campground into the fairgrounds and straight into a huge tent filled with costumes that are more or less period-appropriate. "Hey, Kiera, would you mind fitting Lambert's friends with some costumes, _gratis_?" 

Once she accepts Jaskier gives them a wave and a "See you later!" along with a wink to Geralt that makes his knees go gooey.  


* * *

"I want to live here!" Ciri says, an hour later when the faire has officially opened and the performers and merchants are doing their parts to make this feel almost like a trip back in time. She keeps on twirling her long cotton skirts. There are three of them in different colors, that seem to be different sizes that the costumer tucked up in strange ways, and a thin white blouse with a blue corset top. Ciri says she looks like a horse-brushing princess, so Geralt just takes that to mean that she is still happy while he is happy that she is less likely to drop from overheating in synthetic fabrics. 

"You sure you want to live here? You would have to use Port-A-Potties all the time." 

Ciri wrinkles her nose. "Yuck." 

She pulls him by a hand to a small stage and they sit on a haybale to watch a woman perform magic. "She's beautiful! I love her dress!" 

The woman is beautiful. "The Sorceress Yennefer," the banner says, and the raven-haired woman turns eggs into birds and can appear to conjure fire from nowhere. The way her eyes keep locking on Geralt makes him uncomfortable and she can tell; her purple eyes and her smile have a mocking edge. 

Ciri claps enthusiastically at the end of the show, and they are both pleased to recognize Jaskier as one of the people holding baskets for the crowd to put money in. Geralt give Ciri a couple bills and she proudly puts them in the basket Yennefer is holding and says something to the woman with an infatuated expression on her face. This is something Geralt has seen her frequently do; he doesn't know whether Ciri is getting crushes or searching for a mother figure. He supposes he'll have to wait a few more years to tell for sure. 

"Looking good, Daddy," Geralt hears someone who is decidedly not his daughter say. He feels his face and ears heat up and turns to see Jaskier admiring him. Keira had fitted him with a leather top that looked like armor but had hidden flaps that would hopefully keep him from dying as the temperature rose. He probably wouldn't wear it past noon, but he had secretly wanted Jaskier to see him in it before he took it off. 

Jaskier was dressed in some blue trousers with a matching short jacket that were hand-embroidered with yellow flowers. He has an instrument hanging from a strap across his back and holds a money basket on one hip. He uses his free hand to stroke some of Geralt's hair. "White hair and black leather is a good look for you. A really good look." 

"I dye it," Geralt blurts out, and he is mortified. 

Luckily Jaskier seems charmed by his awkwardness. "Obviously. You're a hot young stud, not a silver fox. Just my type." 

"Not that young," Geralt said, wincing as he hears himself. "Dammit, I used to have game. I swear." 

Jaskier laughs, but it isn't mocking. "Do you want to tell me your name, or should I just keep calling you Daddy?" 

"Geralt. But you can, do the other... thing. If you want." 

"I'm Jaskier." 

"You're also Jake Lytten. I have your albums." Jaskier's real alter-ego was a songwriter and musician who played a variety of instruments and explored a variety of musical genres. He was popular on the indie circuit, though he did more YouTube videos than live concerts, and was also a vocal LGBTQ+ advocate as well as publicly bisexual. 

"A fan!" Jaskier smiles and looks flattered. "I like 'Jaskier' better. It's my bard persona when I'm allowed to be a ren geek." 

"How did you come up with the name Jaskier?" Geralt asks. He is prevented from getting an answer when Ciri returns, pulling Yennefer along. 

"Yennefer, this is my dad." 

Geralt introduces himself politely, shakes her hand, and compliments her performance. 

"Stop making eyes at him, Yen," Jaskier says. "I have dibs." 

"You can't call dibs on a person, bard," Yennefer responds, the last word dripping with condescension. 

Geralt just tries not to blush as they bicker. He thinks they are doing it mostly for fun, but to also make him uncomfortable. Thankfully, Ciri puts an end to their catty exchange. 

"I got to help make Pegasus pretty," she brags to Yennefer. The magician graciously lets herself be lured by the change of topic. 

"You staying for my performance?" Jaskier asks. He shoves his money basket at Yennefer so he could pull his lute from his shoulder. 

Geralt nods. "For as long as Ciri lets us sit still. She really liked watching the magic, so she'll probably get antsy pretty quick, though," he says regretfully. 

Jaskier nods. "Well, if you can trust her with Lambert and Aiden we can meet up for dinner and a private performance," he suggests archly. "Are you local or just visiting for the day?" 

"We have two more nights reserved at a hotel nearby," Geralt says, hardly able to believe this was happening. "I'm sure Lambert will be happy to keep Ciri until... late." 

" _Very_ late," Jaskier amends, tipping his head back so he could look at Geralt with hooded eyes. Jaskier's teeth bit his lower lip and Geralt has to clench his hands into fists to hold himself back. 

A frantic wave from someone on the other side of the stage pulled Jaskier's attention away. "Showtime. I'll try to meet up with you after Aiden's 4 o'clock joust?" 

Geralt swallows and nods, and Jaskier's suggestive grin as he turns away threatens to make Geralt fully hard in his tight pants. 

Geralt pulled Ciri away from Yennefer and Jaskier managed to keep Ciri's interest through one and a half songs. Geralt liked the lyrics and particularly enjoyed being close enough to see how Jaskier's hands handled his instrument. Geralt had to rein his imagination in, though Ciri didn't give him much time before he had to give into her request to take her around to the merchant tents. 

At lunch Geralt treated his daughter to an oversized turkey leg, which looked ridiculous as it was nearly the size of her face. She insisted that Geralt wear her flower crown while she ate so the ribbons wouldn't get greasy and of course that's when Lambert popped up. 

"Oh Geralt, looks like you're the princess now." 

"Ha ha," Geralt says, not laughing. He pretends to be annoyed while his daughter and his best friend giggle. 

Geralt ends up eating most of the turkey as Ciri tells Lambert about everything they saw. Lambert, thankfully, manages to get the girl to drink a fair bit of water then they have to go stand in the restroom line. After everyone's hands are washed Lambert leads them to the kids' activities and the two men have some time to talk while Ciri does crafts. 

Lambert's been traveling with Aiden for almost four months, not really making money except for when he gets paid for odd jobs. Geralt doesn't want to be the boring old man, so he keeps his worries about Lambert's future and the sustainability of this lifestyle to himself. Instead, he listens to Lambert as he practically gushes over his boyfriend and asks questions about the other "knights" they travel with. 

"Oh, man, I forgot to tell you," Lambert says. "You'll never guess who I ran into! Kelsey from middle school! He's one of the horse trainers, and sometimes takes over for a knight if they're short staffed for a performance." 

"Really?" Geralt says, interested. They had called themselves the Three Musketeers in seventh grade. Their parents and teachers had called them The Wolf Pack. Kelsey had ended up going to another high school and they had lost touch. 

"Yeah! He has some gnarly scars, though, so don't be a dick and stare," Lambert says. "Oh, and he goes by the name Eskel, now. Jaskier started this whole anagram name thing, and Eskel liked Eskel and just dropped the Y." 

"Huh," Geralt says. "What's Jaskier an anagram of?" 

"Sir Jake," Lambert says. "It was an old nickname or user name or something." 

"You gonna follow the trend? Will we have start calling you Blertam or something? I don't suppose your first name anagrams to anything, it's so short." 

"I don't have a first name," Lambert says, even though he does and Geralt knows what it is. 

"Hey, uh, speaking of Jaskier. You mind if you and Aiden take Ciri for dinner and maybe afterward?" Geralt asks. 

Lambert teases him. "You gonna hook up with your pop idol, G?" 

"Shut up," Geralt says, "He doesn't make pop music." 

"Yeah, yeah, I bet his music's all soulful and shit. You always were the emo kid." 

Geralt is about to tell him to shut up again, but Ciri's coming at them with her completed projects and she big smile.  


* * *

Geralt thinks the joust is rather silly at first, but Ciri is enthralled and squealing with happiness at the horses and cheering for the "queen" and for Aiden. (They had been specifically ordered to find seats in the red section so they would be on Aiden's side.) 

He actually is impressed when the real show happens. That armour looks heavy, and horses can be unpredictable, and the weapons may not be sharp but they are real metal and sound like they pack a heavy punch. For safety, the entire jousting show has to be a carefully choreographed dance. Even though Geralt knows it's all fake, he still finds himself holding his breath at certain points of the performance. 

After most of the crowd clears out Ciri and Geralt make their way to the gate that leads behind the scenes. Aiden's still passing his helmet around in the crowd, so Lambert meets them and waves them through. The horses who had been in the show are getting taken care of by half a dozen handlers, and Lambert points out Eskel to Geralt and Ciri. 

"We knew him when we were kids," he tells the girl. "He's really good with animals, but you know they can be dangerous, right?" She nods with wide eyes. "Well, Eskel has some scars on this part of his face. They might make him look mean or scary, but do you think you can be polite to him? He is really a nice guy." 

"Of course Uncle Lambert," Ciri says. Geralt is taken aback by how mature she sounds and hopes that Eskel's face isn't too frightening. 

When Eskel joins them he and Geralt share a quick, awkward half-hug. Ciri is on her best behavior when she is introduced, though she is much shyer than she had been with Aiden of Jaskier. That may have mostly been because Eskel was quieter and less playful than either of them, though. 

Aiden finally joins them and they take a quick tour of how the jousting operation works. They are at the armory when Lambert insists that Geralt show off his fencing skills. Aiden insists that they wear armor when they play with the swords even though Geralt knows he is good enough to not accidentally hit Aiden. Though when he actually picks up a weapon he loses confidence because it weighs so much more than the sabers or foils he uses where he works. 

He's so focused on parrying Aiden's attacks and making quick slashes of his own that Geralt doesn't realize Jaskier has joined the group watching them until he takes off his helmet. He and Aiden remove and put away the gear before they go to where their friends are waiting and Lambert greets them with a cold blast of water from a hose. Aiden laughs and Geralt is a bit annoyed, but he just wrings out his hair and uses Ciri's jacket from his backpack to dry off his chest. He manages to pick up and give Ciri a kiss on the cheek before he meets Jaskier's gaze. 

The musician has a smile on his lips and a dark heat to his eyes. Jaskier picks up the borrowed leather costume and hands it to Lambert. 

"Oops, looks like you're going to have to have dinner with no shirt!" Ciri and the men laugh for different reasons while Geralt scowls as he blushes and pulls out his shirt from the morning from his bag and puts it on. He zips he backpack up and also passes it to Lambert. "Would you please take Ciri to return the costumes? I'll see you sometime after dinner, Ciri, okay? Have fun with Uncle Lambert and don't let him give you any beer." 

"I only did that once and it was only a sip," Lambert protests. "She hated it. It's like aversion therapy, G, I am saving you money on rehab in the future." 

Geralt does not want to ever think about Ciri and alcohol and rehab ever, so he promises to catch up with Eskel more the next day and then he and Jaskier start walking. 

"So how do you know how to sword fight?" 

"I teach foil, epee, and saber classes along with archery and beginner judo, sometimes," Geralt says. 

"So you're a teacher as well as professional bad ass?" Jaskier says, looking impressed. 

Geralt shrugs. "I also do pest control for my dad's company sometimes, when he needs the help or I need the extra paycheck." 

"If you can cook and build your own furniture you might be the perfect husband I've been looking for," Jaskier teases. 

Geralt shrugs but is pleased when Jaskier links his arm through his. "This way," Jaskier says, leading him around a beverage booth and behind the back wall. There's just some trucks here and an electricity generator that powers the soda machine. 

"What's back here?" Geralt asks, confused. 

"Just us," Jaskier says and he basically attacks Geralt with his mouth and hands. He enjoys the assault and doesn't try to defend himself. 

"God, the water was just dripping off your chest!" Jaskier pulls away to say. "And the black leather. I've been half-hard all day. I jerked off before my first show and I would love if if you helped me do it again now." 

Geralt is incredibly flattered and turned on. "If you get off now, what will we do after dinner?" 

"Well," Jaskier says coyly, "I promise to get you off." 

Geralt grabs Jaskier's hands and holds them above their heads. "Can we head back to your place and get something to eat later?" 

Jaskier grins. "Only if you don't mind Spaghetti-Os. I was serious about finding a husband who can cook." 

"I think I'll lower my standards for the definition of food for tonight," Geralt agrees. 

Jaskier's smile threatens to break up into laughter as he says, "In that case, I have plenty for you to eat back at the trailer." 

Geralt lets go of Jaskier's wrists and steps back shaking his head and chuckling. "That was bad. But I'm up for it." 

"You totally are," Jaskier says with a leer. "C'mon, it's not too far. Do you want to go the short way or are you shy?"  


* * *

Geralt picks up a sleepy Ciri a little bit after nine to go back to the hotel, both worn out from the day but looking forward to the next.  


* * *

Ciri wears her black leggings and chooses to borrow a green tunic with a thick leather belt on Sunday. She says she is tired of being a princess and wants to be a lady knight. Geralt is coerced by Keira to wear a loosely-woven white shirt with his black jeans. She tries to convince him to buy some leather pouches or a scabbard or something because she thinks he would look "dashing," but Geralt isn't ready to invest so much money into this renaissance faire stuff even though Ciri joins Keira in her campaign. 

Ciri is less awed and more demanding the second day, wanting Geralt to buy her item after item as things catch her eye. One of Ciri's teachers had suggested that he redirect her "wanting things" into "giving things" which Geralt thinks doesn't make any sense until he tells Ciri she can pick out one inexpensive gift each for Lambert, Aiden, Eskel, and Jaskier to say "thank you." She abruptly refocuses and starts dithering over finding the "perfect thing" to get each person. Geralt is surprised at how much effort and thought she is putting into this task. 

Ciri decides on a small toy horse for Eskel, a leather wristband with a stylized cat punched into it for Aiden, and a keychain with a leather fob that says "Vampires Suck" to go with a key to their new apartment for Lambert. Geralt isn't ashamed that he talks Ciri into buying Jaskier a necklace with a glass marble holding a small yellow flower inside as well as fibbing to her about the price, but he wants to leave Jaskier with a nice memento to remember him by. 

Lambert, Aiden, and Eskel take Ciri off to pet the horses after the five of them meet for lunch, and Geralt goes to the stage to watch Jaskier perform. Jaskier winks at him while he sings and plays his lute. 

After his performance and after Jaskier and his helpers collect his tips, Jaskier and Geralt walk across the faire to the jousting arena. They stop so Jaskier can chat with a silversmith he knows, and Geralt (who makes a living with swords, albeit blunt ones, and has seen every episode of "Forged in Fire") asks the craftsman questions about the process and watches him melt metal in a tiny forge, pour the glowing liquid into a mould, and then lets it cool before polishing it. The shape turns out to be a spiky silver wolf head, and Geralt is surprised to see Jaskier nod and grin approvingly before handing over most of his profits from that afternoon's performance. The smith puts the medallion on a leather thong and it is passed from him to Jaskier to Geralt. 

"What? I, uh, thank you," Geralt doesn't know who to direct his gratitude to, so he awkwardly nods to both of them. Jaskier gives the silversmith a more hearty thanks then leads Geralt away. 

"A wolf?" 

Jaskier hugged his arm. "Reminds me of you. Big, bad, gruff protector who will roll over for belly rubs from the right people." 

Geralt is moved by the gift and his words. He swallows hard as he puts the cord over his head and settles the large, heavy charm on his chest. Jaskier beams at him and says, "Looks really good on you!" 

"It will help me remember you and our time together," Geralt says, feeling sad. 

Jaskier also looks sad, but nods. "If I didn't have to travel so much... Well, I gave you my contact info last night. We could keep in touch." 

Geralt had thought about it. "I don't think that would be good for me," he admits, and is relieved to see Jaskier nod in regretful understanding and acceptance. "I have to keep things stable for Ciri, and pining over you with some kind of long-distance connection isn't going to be good for me or her. If things were different, I might actually follow Lambert's example and give everything up to follow you." 

Jaskier blows out a long breath and nods again. "Well, I'm flattered. And disappointed. But this is where our lives are at." He wraps both his hands around Geralt's left hand and squeezes it. "I don't know if this will hurt or help, but you are definitely the type of guy I could fall for." 

Geralt feels regret and other emotions well up inside of him and pulls the singer into a fierce embrace. He doesn't know either whether what Jaskier said hurts or helps, but he is glad that he said it.  


They meet for dinner with Ciri, Lambert, Aiden, Eskel, and, to Geralt's surprise, Yennefer. Ciri is still obsessed with her, but the performer politely says her goodbyes fairly early in the evening. Geralt then prompts Ciri to hand out her presents, but keeps hold of the little packet with the necklace until last. 

"And here, Jaskier, this is from me," Ciri says as he passes it to the musician. "Thank you for being nice and letting me help with Pegasus." 

Jaskier accepts the gift with gracious words and enthusiasm. When he opens it his eyes flick between Ciri and Geralt and Geralt's own new pendant. "Oh, it's beautiful!" He holds it up so the glass can shine in the afternoon summer sunlight. It that a dandelion inside?" 

Ciri nods. "Dad said that you have yellow flowers on your blue costume, so I thought it was perfect! Do you like it?" 

"I love it," Jaskier says, his eyes looking misty. "I will think of you both whenever I wear it," he adds, putting it over his head. 

Lambert catches Geralt's eye and mouths "Loverboy" at him, and Geralt rolls his eyes. 

When it's time for Geralt and Ciri to go they say goodbye to Eskel first, exchanging emails and phone numbers. Geralt plans to keep in touch with him; he may be quieter than he was at 13, but there's still the depth of loyalty and steadfastness that Geralt remembers. He is grateful that Aiden is either kinder or less fixated on making fun of Geralt than Lambert is, because he smoothly draws Ciri and Lambert's attention so that Jaskier and Geralt can have a final moment alone. 

"You know how to reach me if, if things change," Jaskier says. 

Geralt nods. "Thanks for spending time with me this weekend. I'll keep watching your videos and listening to your music. You are so talented, and you deserve to be more well-known than you are." 

"Thanks," Jaskier says. He leans up to kiss Geralt. "You take care of that little girl of yours. She's gonna light up the world." 

"Or burn it down." 

Jaskier laughs "There isn't an evil bone in her body! She's got imagination and compassion. Just like her dad." 

Geralt shakes his head. "I don't have an imagination. Where did you get that idea?" 

Jaskier grins. "You're a secret romantic, so you have to at least a little." He taps his new necklace. 

They don't draw out their farewell much longer. With a final hug and kiss Geralt lets Jaskier go and turns to catch up with his daughter.  


* * *

Over the next few years Geralt becomes certain that Jaskier was right, that he does have an imagination, because he sees Jaskier's (Jake's, rather) public life continue as normal, with outrageous outfits and gutsy sound bites and personal interviews about growing up knowing that he was bisexual from a young age. The new album, his third, that Jaskier had hinted about when they were together came out that September and Geralt could close his eyes and imagine how Jaskier would look singing his lyrics. It turns out to be the one that makes him in demand for live performances, so his career picks up in pace and notoriety. 

He is surprised, however, that it takes four years for him to release his fourth album. Geralt supposes that with more fame and live shows and appearances that Jaskier must have less time to write and compose. It's only when he hears the album from the first time that Geralt understands that Jaskier had also felt a real connection that weekend with him, because the first track is called 'Dandelion' and is about having a cherished memory of someone they had known for only a short while. Ciri, now 13, is old enough to understand that Jaskier's song is about him and oscillates between being proud and sad for him and disgusted that there is evidence of her dad's sex life out in the world. 

They attend a live concert in their city and it is bittersweet for Geralt to see him again at such a distance. "Why don't you call him? Or email?" Ciri asks, and Geralt's excuses are so transparent that she calls him out for being a coward, with excessive adolescent pique and much eye-rolling.  


Four years after that Jaskier has evolved into a rock idol and has rebranded himself as the lead singer for the band Dragon Hunt. It takes time for Geralt to learn to like his newest material, and he still hates the songs where they distort Jaskier's voice, but he sees that the band is playing in a couple of local cities and buys tickets to go. Ciri's at college and he really should get out of the house more. It's not because he's a lonely middle-aged man who is hoping to reconnect with a summer weekend fling. 

But, because Geralt has accepted that he is a sad romantic, he wears a black leather jacket with his wolf medallion tucked inside. The first venue takes two hours to get to with traffic, and he nearly chickens out when he gets there and sees the young crowd. Most of the fans at the concert seem to be Ciri's age, and he lurks by the bar instead of in the crush of the small crowd. He feels silly as he drives home in the middle of the night, not to mention old and tired. 

When he talks to Ciri she insists that he at least go to the second show he has a ticket for. "Ugh, you're so depressing. You don't care about what those idiots at the concert think of you! They probably just think you're with his security- you do have a tendency to lurk and glare at people. Besides, you always complain about me throwing money away so you would be a hypocrite if you didn't go." 

So Geralt goes. This concert is close to home, so he won't be investing too much time driving anyway. He wears the leather jacket again. He doesn't live in a college town, so the audience here has a wider age range. Unfortunately, that also means that there are some adults here that are more interested in getting drunk than enjoying the live performance. Geralt is pretty close to the band when a drunk tries to shove his way to the stage and elbows a teenage girl in the eye. Geralt hauls the guy up by his hoodie and drags him to the lobby to ask the real security to kick him out. 

He sees the girl getting examined by a medic in the lobby and she rushes up to introduce herself as Lindsey and she thanks him. Geralt just nods and says "You're welcome. I hope he didn't hit you too badly," and goes back into the scrum of the theater. 

He decides to head out before the final song, a reprise of Dragon Hunt's latest hit, is even half-over to avoid the crush but is stopped by a theater employee. 

"You're the guy who rescued that girl, right? The band wanted to thank you personally. Lemme find Egan." The blue-haired girl asks him to wait while she goes to find this Egan person and Geralt feels an anxious flutter in his stomach and thinks about running away. But the lure of possibly seeing Jaskier is too tempting. He dithers over pulling the wolf's head pendant out or if that would be too desperate, and he decides to keep it hidden. He doesn't want to seem like he's been obsessed over Jaskier for the last eight or so years. 

Egan introduces himself as someone who works with Dragon Hunt and leads Geralt through a door to the backstage area. The crowd has called for an encore, and Geralt can hear one of their slower songs playing through speakers as he is left to wait in the green room. 

He isn't alone; Lindsey, the girl who was injured, is also there, beaming ecstatically despite her darkening black eye. "Can you believe it?" She says. "We get to meet the band! The manager was so nice and sorry that I got hurt and said they wanted to meet us! Oh my god, can you believe we are going to meet Jake and Valdo?" 

Geralt nodded woodenly. He didn't know why he was here; he wasn't a fan of the band, he just liked Jaskier- Jake. He should remember to call him Jake. If Jake even remembers him, of course, which why would he? He's famous now, real famous. 

He doesn't have time to do more than stand up before three of the four band members are coming in. One of them is Jask- Jake. And, Jesus Christ, the singer looks like he recognizes Geralt. 

"Oh my god, Geralt?!" Jask- Jake sounds even more awestruck than Lindsey had a moment before when she said the same phrase. 

Jake practically runs up and throws his arms around Geralt and Geralt awkwardly hugs him back. "Of course you saved the girl! If I knew you lived here I could have guessed it would be you. You're the hero type. And, _fuck_ , you're wearing black leather again. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" 

"You remember me," Geralt says. "I didn't know if you would. It was-" 

"Eight years ago, right?" Jaskier- dammit _Jake_ \- finishes for him. He's standing close, his face beaming up at Geralt, sweating off his make-up. "I couldn't forget you. Or Ciri. Is she here?" At Geralt's head shake he went on. "I wrote a song for you. Did you hear it? Did you know it was about you?" 

Geralt's cheeks were turning red. He could feel it. "'Dandelion'? I thought it might be about me. I didn't want to assume, I mean, it was a long time ago." 

Jake's smile dims a bit. "Yeah, of course. You've probably dated and have someone by now, right?" 

Geralt lets himself hope at the badly-hidden disappointment Jaskier displays at that thought. "No. I mean, I dated a little bit, but I think they just thought I was pathetic." 

"Why would anyone think you were pathetic?" Jaskier says, putting his hands on his hips and looking angry on Geralt's behalf. 

"I was still kind of hung up on somebody," Geralt confessed. (He might as well, right? If this was a mistake, he could be embarrassed and then leave and never even think of Jaskier again.) Geralt decides to unzip his jacket enough to see if the singer recognizes the medallion, and he does. Jaskier's face completely lights up upon seeing it, then softens as he connects the pendant to what Geralt's saying. 

"So, what, your circumstances have changed?" He asks, shyly biting his lip. 

"Ciri's away at college. I have some free time now. To... maybe travel, and stuff." 

Jaskier seems to be unable to hold himself back anymore and kisses him. Geralt kisses back, and it takes him a moment to realize that the rush in his ears isn't his racing heartbeat- the rest of the crowd in the Green Room (and it has become quite a sizeable crowd) is clapping at their performance. 

He pulls away, aware he is probably blushing like a ripe tomato, and begs Jaskier, "Can we go somewhere else?" 

Jaskier grins. "You're gonna have to get over some of that shyness if we're going to be dating. But yeah, lemme introduce you to the guys, first."


End file.
